Monday, July 26, 2010

'house in minamimachi 03' by suppose design office in hiroshima, japan
all images courtesy of suppose design officejapanese architecture firmsuppose design officehas recently completed a three-storey housein hiroshima, japan. typical of modern japanese practice, 'house in minamimachi 03' standssnugly in between two other residential plots, an unassuming structure made entirely outof reinforced concrete.contrary to how the design may be read from the outside, the exterior shell is a separate layerfrom the interior space. the design essentially utilizes a box-within-a-box scheme: the concreteskin acts as an urban fence, providing privacy for the residents, while the interior box sitsin an offset orientation to create angular lightwell cavities in between the two layers.in addition to creating privacy, the concrete box also acts as a structural armature for the innerframework, enabling the house to be constructed largely out of glass curtain walls. the interioris treated with light-coloured wood and white paint to maximize on the natural daylighting effect.street viewconcrete facade and entranceinterior lit by the lightwell cavitykitchen and living arealight wood treatment in the flooring and cabinetrywashroomstairwell also acting as a lightwell for the lower levels(left) washroom
(right) retractable windows in the living area